What in the world is happening in Ukraine? A mystery plague that is directly attacking the respiratory systems of its victims, filling the lungs with blood before ultimately disintegrating them is causing panic not only in Ukraine but across central Europe. Some health experts in the region believe that parainfluenza is the cause of this outbreak. Others believe that a virus similar to the 1918 Spanish flu is on the loose. Still others fear that the H1N1 swine flu has mutated and become more virulent. Whatever is causing the mystery plague in Ukraine, the reality is that unprecedented numbers of people are getting sick and being hospitalized.

These are the latest official numbers out of Ukraine: 1,347,538 have reported catching the illness, 73,373 have been hospitalized and 282 are dead. However, there are unconfirmed reports that the number of dead is significantly higher than that. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization is being extremely evasive about the situation in Ukraine. Many observers are baffled as to why the WHO is continuing to refuse to release the sequences from the samples taken from patients in Ukraine well over a week ago.

At the same time, there has been a substantial spike in flu cases in other nearby European nations such as Russia, Belarus, Serbia and Bulgaria. Also, a very serious increase in flu cases is being reported in Norway, India and Canada. The most frightening thing is that in many of those nations there are reports that the flu is disintegrating the lungs of patients just like it is doing in Ukraine.

So just what in the world is happening in Ukraine?

Well, some Ukrainian health officials are convinced that parainfluenza is involved.